Teeny chameleons

That's not just a very close close-up of that newly discovered chameleon. No matter your screen size, that photo is probably way larger than life-size, as you can judge from the next photo:

To be fair, that is apparently a juvenile, but even the adults are only a little bit more than an inch in total length. This is one of four new species of tiny chameleons discovered in Madagascar, described in a paper published this week.

As so often with these stories it's happy and sad at the same time - from "Cool animal!" to "Uh oh" in the space of a blog post - and for these guys, the discoverers even immortalized this in their names. The unique wildlife of Madagascar is under threat from habitat destruction, and with only a small range, these newly discovered reptiles are at special risk. The threat inspired the Latin names of two of the new species. One is called Brookesia tristis, derived from the word for "sad," and another is rather obvious: Brookesia desperata.

-Wombat (No Relation)

Life imitates art

I'm not sure the lined leaf-tailed gecko counts as ugly, especially compared to some of its creepy-looking relatives that we have seen on this blog. But it sure is the opposite of warm and furry - in fact it looks almost exactly like a carved wooden animal:

Apparently this is its way of trying not to be seen in the bamboo forests where it lives, like so:

That's not bad, but I think it might be even better off trying to hide in a gift shop full of wooden souvenirs... except I would probably buy him and take him home.

Thanks for our friends at Archie McPhee's Geyser of Awesome for introducing me to this gecko and for photos, to Flickr user David d'O and Wikispecies.

-Wombat (No Relation)

Ugdorable or Not?

That's the pig-nosed turtle, Carettochelys insculpta. I learned about it from an article at Australian Geographic which told me all kinds of interesting facts about this species: It's the only surviving member of the family carettochelyidae, it's an evolutionary transition between land and water turtles, and it's very tasty and could go extinct if hunting isn't curtailed.

But they couldn't tell me what I really wanted to know: If I posted this, would a whole bunch of you comment "That's not ugly, that's cute!"?

Inquiringly,
-Wombat (No Relation)

Happy World Turtle Day!

Monday May 23rd is World Turtle Day, first declared in 2000 by American Tortoise Rescue. And for the occasion we've got someone who is obviously VERY happy with his ugly turtle.

Pictured is Japanese biologist Munetaka Nakagawa and the enormous soft-shelled turtle that he recently found in a river in Kyoto. It's thought to be over 50 years old and probably the largest of its species in Japan, at 38.5 centimeters long and a weight of 7.3 kg.

Not only is that guy smiling, apparently Japanese culture in general puts a more positive spin on this ugly animal than you might expect:

Soft-shelled turtles are traditionally associated with nourishment and strength. For that reason, Nakagawa suggested, "It may have appeared to send us a message, 'Cheer up, Japan!'"

And I'm sure it will cheer everyone up to see this excellent close-up profile shot of an Asian softshell (courtesy of Wikipedia):


Slow and steadily,
- Wombat (No Relation)

Race to save the ugly

In Vietnam, hundreds of people are racing to clean up a lake that's home to one of only four known specimens of a species of giant freshwater turtle.

Rafeteus swinhoei is revered, almost sacred to the Vietnamese, but sadly, this hasn't kept it from the brink of extinction.

Some even believe that the turtle currently living in Hoan Kiem lake is the same individual that helped a 15th-century king defeat an army with a weapon given to him by the gods. Unfortunately, this legendary status hasn't stopped people from throwing trash into the lake in Hanoi, which has become polluted and full of debris. Now, open wounds are visible when the turtle is spotted, as you can see on its neck in the photo above.

Would-be rescuers are cleaning the lake, pumping in fresh water, and hope to coax the turtle onto a small platform so they can treat its injuries.

Wishing them luck,
-Wombat (No Relation)

Spiky

Oh hi. The part of my brain that constructs interesting sentences is temporarily out of commission, having been worn out by the push to meet a book deadline. But I decided that this creature was too wonderful to miss just because I have nothing to say about it. It's the Antsingy leaf chameleon of Madagascar, and I don't think we've seen it before.



You can learn more here.

Photos from Flickr user David d'O and thanks to @Speciesoftheday for introducing me to this critter.

Speechlessly,
-Wombat (No Relation)

Self-Cloning Lizard

First off, a small apology. This gal isn't really that ugly. That said, it's interesting enough that I'm posting it anyway (plus it's a lizard, and it gets points for that, right?). Anyone who came looking for a new excursion into the depths of hideousness might want to look away.

What you see here is the newly discovered (to science) species Leiolepis ngovantrii. Newly discovered to science, not to the locals in its native Vietnam. What makes it so interesting is that the species consists entirely of females, and reproduces by parthenogenesis, a process where the females spontaneously ovulate and resulting eggs re-fuse, resulting in a healthy baby clone, which is genetically identical to the mother. This isn't actually that rare a reproductive strategy, as about 1% of all lizard species use it.

The sadder part of this story comes from how it was discovered. Like a lot of recently "discovered" species, it was well known in its native region. Unfortunately, that condition usually means that the newly discovered species can be found on the menu. That was the case here, it's been the case in the past, and I'm sure it will be in the future. All we can do is hope that we find these guys before they're all gone.

Picture and info courtesy of National Geographic

Snappy fellow keeping his chin up

Came across this beauty while searching for a gruesome photo for my other blog and finding that searching for alligator and turtle naturally gets you a lot of photos of alligator snapping turtles.

We've seen this species before, of course, but not this particular interesting angle. Perhaps that's because this is normally not the smartest place to be with respect to a snapping turtle, but fortunately, this guy is safely behind glass at the National Zoo.

Not tapping on the glass, and advising that you do the same,
-Wombat (No Relation)

Photo by Brian Gratwicke on Flickr.

Sitting With Your Food

I sometimes do exactly what this bearded dragon is doing. I'll head outside to my favorite basking spot and take a seat with my favorite meal, pizza. I'll take a slice and set it on my head, close my eyes, and give a deep sigh of contentedness. It's an almost spiritual moment, sitting there with my food.

Most of my meals don't try to leap away when I go in for the first bite, but I still think this lizard and I could be close friends. A common love of food makes for a strong bond.

Photo source

Eyeball Licking

Why do geckos, such as the crested gecko below, lick their eyeballs? The easy answer is: because they can. (We humans would lick a whole lot more than just our lips if our tongues were longer. I shudder to think what my toddler son would do with his.)

An equally easy answer is it's because some species of gecko (again, like the crested gecko) don't have eyelids. Therefore, they use their tongues and saliva to keep their eyes moist and clean. Probably the gecko equivalent of a seductive eye wink would be a seductive eyeball licking. Tongues can be just as expressive as eyelids, so it probably works out for them. Though, if you're a thirsty gecko, it's got to suck when you, out of habit, lick your eyeball with your dry tongue. Stay hydrated, my reptilian friends.

Photos 1 & 2 courtesy Erin

Now THAT'S an appetite!

My dad forwarded me this series of photos a while back. I think he was trying to tell me something about my own eating habits.

Does anyone know what species of snake this is?

theeternalmusic.com

Have a devilishly ugly weekend

Our friend Uroplatus phantasticus hopes you're having a fantastic Friday. His friends know him as the Satanic leaf-tail gecko, and you can see a great photo of him doing his leaf-imitating thing here.

(That article says that the common name for this species comes from the tiny horn-shaped projections on the head, but you can't really see those on this specimen. Personally I think it's more about that look in his eye.)

Fiendishly,
-Wombat

New Monitor

Usually when you hear of new species being found, they're bitty little bugs or out of the way fish. Rare is the new species a large one, a mega-fauna like this six foot monitor lizard.

Researchers discovered it in the Sierra Madre mountains in the north of the The Philippines. True, the locals have known about them all along, but only recently have biologists gotten their hands on them. Varanus bitatawa eats fruit exclusively, and they're very reclusive, which is the only reason biologists can think of for why they've remained unknown to the science. They stick to their forests and never cross open ground. That's my kind of giant lizard--shy and out of sight.

Thanks for the link, Tom

Photo source: Joseph Brown via BBC

Camouflaged Spread

Jaden sent us this link from ThisBlogRules.com. Enjoy this spread of camouflaged creatures, including a crab spider, a scorpion fish, a stone fish, and an orchid mantis. Thanks, Jaden.

Side-Neck Turtle

Enjoy this side-necked turtle sent to us from Pamela. Imagine it coming after your toes as you swim across a placid stream...

Content Croc

This crocodile looks exactly like I do after I've had more than my share of pizza--content and pleased with himself. Of course, he also looks like the rocks around him, so I don't know what that says about me.

Photo source: Riverbank Outdoor Store

Uroplatus fimbriatus

Photo source: Nicolas Cegalerba
It's a stretch to call geckos, even these Uroplatus fimbriatus, flat-tailed geckos, ugly. But they are reptiles, and they do lick their own enormous eyeballs. That's a good start. Another test I run on any prospective ugly: would my daughters scream at seeing one clambering up their bedroom wall? Yes, they would.

Freshwater Fears

I've gone scuba diving in kelp forests, in the Red Triangle with 10-foot visibility and 5-foot surges, and in wrecks that were deep enough to give me nitrogen narcosis. But for some reason I freak out at the notion of getting into bodies of freshwater. Images like the one below don't help.

What we've got here is a Florida softshell turtle (Apalone ferox). As their name implies, they are turtle with soft shells that are native to Florida (and some nearby neighboring states). They're fast on land and on water, and prefer slow moving streams, lakes or ponds.

Photo source: Gloucester, A Bottled Spider

Once when I was diving in Monterey, California, I turned around and saw a seal watching me from five feet away. It made my year. But if I were in a lake and turned around to see this, it would ruin me. Why, again, I couldn't tell you. Maybe it goes back to when a softshell turtle ate my father.

A Man with a Snake in His Mouth

For all I know, this man might be a very dutiful snake owner. Maybe he runs a rescue operation, does captive breeding for endangered species, and is a diligent defender of snakes the world over. Or, maybe the snake tried to strike at him, and the man is so fast that he caught the strike with his mouth, ninja-style.

But when I look at this photo, the darker part of me hopes that the snake has latched on to the man's tongue and intends to swallow him whole, tongue first. But it isn't so much the thoughts that occur to us that condemn us, but the thoughts that we entertain. So, I'll stick with the former scenario. He's a good man with a snake in his mouth.

BTW, what kind of snake is this?

UPDATE: This looks to be a king cobra, though it's likely that it has been defanged. Score one for my dark side.

Out for Carrion

You know spring is here when the common snappers come out to prowl. Guard your fingers and toes, especially if you're a corpse, as these creatures are mainly carrion eaters. They have been known to attack swimmers (especially dead ones), so be on the look out.

Photo source: Michael Oberman